Found this nugget in the Philip Yancey book I'm reading...
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus raises the ideals so high that none of us can reach them. I have not committed adultery - have I ever lusted? I have not murdered - have I ever hated? Do I love my enemies? Do I give to everyone who asks? What sounds at first like bad news, a moral standard that no one can reach, takes a dramatic shift, for in the same sermon Jesus lowers the safety net of grace. In His ministry Jesus gave vivid proof that no one need fall below the reach of God's grace, not a prostitute, thief, murderer or traitor. Indeed, Peter the traitor and Paul the human rights abuser, both now forgiven and transformed, proceed to lead the way in spreading that gospel of grace.
From "Vanishing Grace," page 229
